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Aggressive behaviour is common in Chinese inpatients with schizophrenia. The prevalence figures indicate the need to identify reliable clinical and illness predictors for aggression in inpatient psychiatric wards and to test investigations aimed at reducing aggressive episodes and their adverse outcomes.

BackgroundThis study assessed the effect of expressed emotion (EE) among caregivers of schizophrenia patients on their care burden and the illness rehospitalization rate.Subjects and methodsA total of 64 schizophrenia patients hospitalized for the first time and their key caregivers were recruited. The Chinese version of the Camberwell Family Interview (CFI-CV) was used to evaluate the EE of the key caregivers. A family burden questionnaire was used to evaluate the care burden. The patients’ rehospitalization rate and medication compliance were evaluated by the self-designated criteria. The data collection was carried out at the first meeting in the hospital, at 6 months and 12 months after hospital discharge by using the same instruments.ResultsThe subjective stress burden and subjective demand burden scores were higher in caregivers before and after discharge with statistical difference between the various observation time points (P<0.05). Significant differences were observed in the rehospitalization rate between patients with high medication adherence and low medication adherence at 12 months (P<0.01) and between patients with high expressed emotion (HEE) and low expressed emotion (LEE; P<0.05). The rehospitalization rate in patients with HEE caregivers was higher than that in those with LEE caregivers. The subjective stress burden scores were statistically significant between HEE and LEE caregivers (P<0.05).ConclusionHEE is a predictor of rehospitalization rate in schizophrenic patients. The burdens of care scores are high in caregivers of schizophrenic patients. The caregivers with HEE have a high score in burden of care compared with those with LEE.

Background: Studies have shown that manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) has a beneficial effect on lymphedema related to breast cancer surgery. However, whether MLD reduces the risk of lymphedema is still debated. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to summarize the current evidence to assess the effectiveness of MLD in preventing and treating lymphedema in patients after breast cancer surgery. Methods: From inception to May 2019, PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library databases were systematically searched without language restriction. We included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared the treatment and prevention effect of MLD with a control group on lymphedema in breast cancer patients. A random-effects model was used for all analyses. Results: A total of 17 RCTs involving 1911 patients were included. A meta-analysis of 8 RCTs, including 338 patients, revealed that MLD did not significantly reduce lymphedema compared with the control group (standardized mean difference (SMD): −0.09, 95% confidence interval (CI): [−0.85 to 0.67]). Subgroup analysis was basically consistent with the main analysis according to the research region, the publication year, the sample size, the type of surgery, the statistical analysis method, the mean age, and the intervention time. However, we found that MLD could significantly reduce lymphedema in patients under the age of 60 years (SMD: −1.77, 95% CI: [−2.23 to −1.31]) and an intervention time of 1 month (SMD: −1.77, 95% CI: [−2.23 to −1.30]). Meanwhile, 4 RCTs including, 1364 patients, revealed that MLD could not significantly prevent the risk of lymphedema (risk ratio (RR): 0.61, 95% CI: [0.29–1.26]) for patients having breast cancer surgery. Conclusions: Overall, this meta-analysis of 12 RCTs showed that MLD cannot significantly reduce or prevent lymphedema in patients after breast cancer surgery. However, well-designed RCTs with a larger sample size are required, especially in patients under the age of 60 years or an intervention time of 1 month.

Diabetes is a major cause of morbidity for patients undergoing surgery and can increase the incidence of some postoperative complications such as bedsores. We conducted a meta-analysis of observational studies to examine whether patients with diabetes undergoing surgery had high risk of bedsore. We performed a systematic literature search in Pubmed, Embase and the Cochrane Library Central Register of Controlled Trials database from inception to November 2016. Studies were selected if they reported estimates of the relative risk (RR) for bedsore risk in postoperative diabetic patients compared with that of in non-diabetic patients. Random-effects meta-analysis was conducted to pool the estimates. A total of 16 studies with 24,112 individuals were included in our meta-analysis. The pooled RR of bedsore development for patients with diatetes was 1.77 (95% CI 1.45 to 2.16). The results of subgroup analyses were consistent when stratified by surgery type, study design, research region, sample size, inclusion period, analysis method and study quality. There was evidence of publication bias among studies and a sensitivity analysis using the Duval and Tweedie “trim-and-fill” method did not significantly alter the pooled results (adjusted RR 1.17, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.36).This meta-analysis provides indications that diabetic patients undergoing surgery could have a higher risk of developing bedsores. Further large-scale prospective trials should be implemented to comfirm the association.

BackgroundA large number of nurses across China joined the anti-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) front-line in Hubei province, where the local healthcare system faced unprecedented challenges in the early 2020. Few studies have reported the psychological experiences of nurses from other regions who voluntarily participated in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei province.AimTo describe the psychological experiences of nurses who were involved in the anti-COVID-19 pandemic battle in Hubei province from January to April 2020.MethodsThis was a qualitative descriptive study using purposive and snowball sampling strategies for participant recruitment. Twenty-four nurses were approached and twenty-one of them completed telephone interviews in April 2020. The interviews took an average of 75 min (range 34–140 min). Data were analyzed thematically after verbatim transcription of the interviews.ResultsOur analysis generated three primary themes: (I) Contexts; (II) Psychological responses; and (III) Coping strategies (most participants identified suitable coping strategies including relaxing activities and seeking social support). Participants' psychological responses varied in four phases of the journey through the experience: (i) initiation phase: obligations and concerns/fears; (ii) transition phase: from overwhelmed to increased confidence; (iii) adaptation phase: a sense of achievement and exhaustion; and (iv) completion phase: professional and personal growth.ConclusionNurses had concerns, fears, and faced challenges working on the COVID-19 front-line. However, they were motivated by a strong sense of professional commitment. Most nurses successfully achieved personal and professional growth as they identified a range of coping strategies. Future research is needed to explore the long-term impact of the COVID-19 related working experiences on these nurses.

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Purpose Being ready for discharge is vital to successful hospital-to-home transitions. However, despite a wealth of evidence on its effectiveness, little is known about readiness for hospital discharge (RHD) in adult patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and its influencing factors. In this study, we investigated the patient-reported RHD and its influencing factors among Chinese adult patients with MDD. Patients and Methods In this cross-sectional design study, 230 adult patients with MDD were recruited according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 6 were excluded due to incomplete questionnaires, finally 224 patients were included in our study. Data were collected from March to September 2019 in a tertiary general hospital in Hunan Province (China). The general information, RHD, quality of discharge teaching and level of depression were assessed by using questionnaires. Univariate analysis and ordinal logistic regression analysis were performed to explore the influencing factors of RHD. Results The RHD score was 7.37 ± 1.40, and 36.2% of participants were not ready for discharge. The score of quality of discharge teaching scale (QDTS) was 6.36 ± 1.89, the dimension of delivery scored highest, followed by content-needed and content-received. The proportions of patients with no, mild, moderate, moderately severe and severe depression were 12.5%, 27.7%, 25.0%, 25.4% and 9.4%, respectively. The following factors were associated with RHD: the level of depression (OR=0.66), the content-received dimension of QDTS (OR=1.16), education level (OR=1.24), work status (OR=1.76) and length of hospitalization (OR=0.53). Conclusion The RHD among participants was at a moderate level. It is strongly suggested to take the assessment of RHD as a routine process. High education level, employment and the content-received dimension of QDTS were protective factors of participants’ RHD, and long-term hospitalization, the high level of depression were its risk factors.